Asha de Vos has committed her life’s work to saving a subspecies of blue whales that breed, feed and live in the northern Indian ocean. She calls them “the Unorthodox Whales” for the many different characteristics they have from blue whales, such as their feeding habits in warmer climates, they are about 1.5 foot shorter than other pygmy blue whales, and they don’t necessarily migrate long ranges for breeding.

She is the first and only Sri Lankan to have a Ph.D. in marine-mammal research. Due to lack of Marine Biology programs in Sri Lanka, she received her undergraduate degree, with honors, in Marine and Environmental Biology at the University of St. Andrews, UK, her graduate degree in Integrative Biosciences at the University of Oxford, UK, and finally her Ph.D. at the University of Western Australia.

Mahavir Singh Phogat and his daughters are an inspiration for South Asians around the world. Not only do they bring pride to India via wrestling, they are constantly promoting a healthy dialogue on breaking down barriers for women in a, historically, male dominated society.

Mahavir Singh is a renowned athlete who is the recipient of The Dronacharya Award by the Wrestling Federation of India. He is also known worldwide as an exceptional coach and currently is a senior coach for the Olympics. He has also coached his own daughters, Geeta and Babita, who took home the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and 2014, respectively. His niece Vinesh who is also a gold medalist was also coached by him. More than his wrestling, Mahavir is celebrated as a father who fought for the rights of his daughters and showed his community that gender is not a gating factor to achieving your goals.

Born in a small village in India, his actions to coach his daughters in wrestling was not received with support. In many South Asian countries, especially in rural areas, the role of a woman is perceived to be a homemaker. Mr. Phogat did not accept this and his message to treat sons and daughters with zero bias between them has spread like wildfire around the globe. He believes that it was his duty as a father to ask his daughters about their dreams and help them achieve those dreams.

With the help of their father, Geeta and Babita along with their sisters have become role models for young women everywhere. Geeta is the first Indian female wrestler to qualify for the Rio Olympics. Recently, their story has been captured in the critically acclaimed Bollywood movie, Dangal, which stars Amir Khan.

This year at the Olympics, Nepal is proud to have Gaurika Singh on their team. Gaurika is the youngest member of the national team at only 13 years old. Not only is she the youngest on the team, but she is the youngest participant in the Olympics. She brings the spotlight to Nepal despite leaving the country with her family at the age of two. Singh currently resides in London and attends the prestigious Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls and will enter the ninth grade after returning home.

She is a survivor of the devastating earthquake that hit Nepal last year. Nearly 9,000 people were killed in one of the worst natural disasters for the country and Singh was lucky enough to have survived even though she was in a five-store building at the time the earthquake hit.

As of 2015, Nepal has welcomed their first female President. Bidya Devi Bhandari, the wife of popular communist leader Madan Bhandari, took office last year taking Nepal’s communist movement to a new level. Bhandari is a native of the village of Bhojpur and prior to winning her position in office, she held the position of Defense Minister and as Vice Chair of the All Nepal Women Association. The 54-year-old is the second President of Nepal after Ram Baran Yadav once the country abolished the monarchy.

If you ever find yourself feeling demotivated, feel free to tune into Sparsh Shah and his incredible cover of Eminem’s “Not Afraid”. Sparsh is a 12 year old boy from Indian descent who suffers from Osteogenesis Imperfecta, which is a disease that makes his bones very brittle. However, this hasn’t stop Sparsh from recreating this beautiful cover of his favorite artist. He has reportedly written many songs, short stories, poems, and speeches and has appeared on television and radio. Sparsh, who also goes by the alias Purhythm, already has over 1 million views of his recent Eminem cover. While his condition may have caused him to break over 125 bones it has not broken his spirit. He is an inspiration for all of us to pursue our dreams no matter what challenges we may face. Please enjoy his video below.

Who We Are

Vibrant South Asian aims to build bridges between the people in South Asia, people of South Asian descent abroad and non-South Asians.

Education is our core focus. We will educate the Colorado community about the region through stories on our website and local events and programs. As we grow, we will enable education for those without access in South Asia by building libraries that serve as centers for learning. Through your support, we can achieve our goals.

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Disclaimer

Please note that the links shared on our site are not reflective of the views or beliefs of Vibrant South Asian or its board members. They are provided as a resource to link you to other sources of information about the South Asian region. If you have any questions or concerns about any content shared on our website please contact us.